Does anyone NOT wear seat belts in cars?

[Wish_I_Was_At_WDW]

A friend told me today they make sure whoever is in the front seat wears seat belts but in the back seat they aren't really strict about it (meaning her kids). She said her husband just recently started wearing his when he drives. I know before she had children she didn't care about seat belts and whenever she took my kids anywhere I'd have to stress that they MUST be restrained. I always thought "when she has her own kids she'll understand" and I'm just really surprised to see she hasn't changed.

Do you always enforce seat belts in your vehicle or not? To me it's such a no brainer.

 

[Fintastic]

We always wear seat belts. Our DD is almost six and she's still in a five-point booster.

 

[clgwli]

Children have to buckle up period. Anyone in the front has to buckle up. I have an alarm in my car that sounds if the one riding in front doesn't buckle up. In the back and it is an adult I won't push but I will request. It's their choice but it isn't against the law.

 

[Deb in IA]

Everyone who gets in my car has to wear a seat belt, regardless of where they sit.

 

[BeachGirlFLA]

In one of the vehicles I ride in on a regular basis, the seat belt on the passenger's seat is broken. Since the police can stop you in Florida just for not wearing your seat belt, I hold it across me so it looks like it's on. In every other vehicle I'm ever in, I wear it.

 

[meloneyb21]

My kids are restrained no matter what. They're both still in their carseats. However, I have a habit of not putting on my seatbelt unless I'm on the expressway. I know I need to change that though.

 

[happygirl]

My kids do. I don't

 

[NMAmy]

When dd was little, she thought the car wouldn't actually move unless everyone's seatbelts were buckled. It was all those years of me saying, "We can't go until everyone is buckled up!"

The look on her face was priceless when her dad hopped in the car to move it to a different position in the driveway without bothering with the seatbelt.

Everyone in my car must be wearing a seatbelt before I'll venture out of the driveway. My mom is the worst offender and always needs to be reminded.

 

[BCDisneyFanatic]

I'd say about 90% of Chileans don't wear seatbelts. And...with the way people drive here, that's REALLY taking a risk!!!

There's nothing that makes me feel more sick to my stomach than seeing a whole bunch of kids piled into the back of the car, standing up and jumping around. I am SO paranoid of having an accident...even a small fender bender could have such tragic consequences with all these unrestrained kids in the cars!

 

[laurie31]

My kids do. I don't

Do you have a will that names their guardian?

Sorry, that sounds bad, but I've taken care of so many kids who were in the back seat in car seats, and were uninjured, but the unrestrained parents died on the scene. It's so sad holding them waiting until some family member comes to get them.

I've also taken care of two kids (two different wrecks)who were properly restrained, but had skull fractures because they were hit by the body of their unrestrained parent.

Not wearing a seat belt is betting your life that you won't be in a wreck.

 

[C.Ann]

Absolutely buckle up!! All passengers - regardless of age or where they are sitting..

Perfect example of why it's a good idea.. On the 4th of July, my son-in-law borrowed my van (which seats 7) because there was quite a crowd heading over to town to see the fireworks that night.. (Several vehicles with adults and children alike..) When everyone was seated in my van, he requested that everyone "buckle up" - which they did..

On the way to town - on a dark country road - a deer darted out in front of him.. He's experienced enough to know that you never "swerve" a van, SUV, or truck in a situation like that because the odds are that it will tip over.. All he could do was to slam on the brakes as hard as he possible could - stopping one foot from the deer.. Had there been unrestrained passengers in that van, there would have been bodies flying all over the place and even the possibility that someone would have been ejected through one of the windows or the windshield.. It was literally a tragedy waiting to happen and luckily they were all seat-belted in and there were NO vehicles behind him..

Everyone should buckle up - regardless..

 

[mikehn]

Most of the time I wear mine, but sometimes I dont. Like for example, I dont wear it when I drive from my house to the pool, 200 yards down the road. I guess Im half brainless.

 

[happygirl]

Do you have a will that names their guardian?

Sorry, that sounds bad, but I've taken care of so many kids who were in the back seat in car seats, and were uninjured, but the unrestrained parents died on the scene. It's so sad holding them waiting until some family member comes to get them.

I've also taken care of two kids (two different wrecks)who were properly restrained, but had skull fractures because they were hit by the body of their unrestrained parent.

Not wearing a seat belt is betting your life that you won't be in a wreck.

I have known many many people who have been killed in car accident getting trapped under a car.

 

[AshleyW]

I always, always, always wear mine. A girl in my graduating class died during spring break our senior year, because she was in the backseat of an SUV sleeping (no seatbelt) coming home, and her friend swerved to miss a deer and flipped the SUV. The driver had a seatbelt on and survived, but my friend and another girl both died because they got thrown from the SUV. So, because of that and how many deer we have running around Iowa, I'm always buckled up whether I'm driving, on the passenger side, or riding in the back.

 

[Arielle22]

Anyone in my car has to wear their seatbelt. When DDs were younger, dh and I would put on ours and yell out "check" which the girls would then repeat as their belts were put on.

When I got my last manicure I didn't put on my belt for the mile it took between the shop and my house. I was so paranoid that something would happen in that short a time.

BIL is a cop and he tells lots of stories of accidents where the occupants were ejected due to no seat belts. There was a particularly graphic one 2 weeks ago that almost made me lose my lunch.

 

[sbell111]

If you ride in a car that I'm driving, you are required to buckle up.

 

[MoniqueU]

I have to remind my husband to put his on, I don't get it. I feel naked without mine. My kids absolutely put theirs on. The laws about booster seats have changed apparently since my kids were younger. All my kids were out of booster seats by the time K started. The law here at the time was 4 years OR 40 lbs. Not sure what it is now.

 

[BCDisneyFanatic]

I have known many many people who have been killed in car accident getting trapped under a car.

From the Michigan State Police Website:

MYTH: I don't want to be trapped in a fire or underwater.

FACT: Crashes involving fire or water happen in only 1/2 of one percent of all crashes. So it doesn't happen often. However, when they do occur the best chance of survival rests in remaining conscious, uninjured, and in full possession of your faculties. The greatest danger is with the impact that precedes the fire or submersion in water. If you're not using a safety belt, it's very likely that you will be knocked unconscious or severely injured. If you're belted, it's very likely you will be able to unbuckle yourself and get out of a potential fire or submerged car situation.

MYTH: I'd rather be thrown clear in a crash.

FACT: Being thrown safely clear in a crash is almost impossible. When you're thrown, you may be thrown through the windshield, scraped along the pavement, or even crushed by your own vehicle or another one. The idea of being thrown from a car and gently landing in a grassy area beside the road is pure fantasy. Your best bet in a crash is to stay inside the vehicle, securely held by your safety belt.

MYTH: Belts can hurt you in a crash.

FACT: Properly worn safety belts seldom cause injuries. If they do, the injuries are usually surface bruises and are generally less severe than would have been the case without any belt. Without the belts, you could probably have been thrown out of the vehicle and been injured severely. It is true that sometimes the force of a crash is so great that nothing could have prevented injuries. Studies have consistently shown that injuries in most serious crashes would have been much more severe had safety belts not been worn.

http://www.michigan.gov/msp/0,1607,7-123-1593_3504_22774-13689--,00.html

 

[taylor1293]

Anyone, of any age, who rides in my car must wear a seatbelt.

 

[torinsmom]

I always wear mine, and anyone riding in my car must wear one or find another ride. The only time I would consider not wearing one is if I am going across a parking lot from one store to another. The worst wreck I was ever in was 1/2 mile from my house when a semi-type tow truck rammed into the side of us. If we had thought "We're just going down the road", then who knows how badly we would have been hurt?

As far as being trapped in a car, spend $15 and buy this tool or a similar one....

http://www.amazon.com/LifeHammer-Orange-Original-Emergency-Hammer/dp/B000BN3A4Y

Put it somewhere that you can reach WITH YOUR SEATBELT BUCKLED. I keep mine in the center console. That way, it will not fly out if the car flips. It has a blade to cut the seatbelt, a special hammer to break the safety glass and this one has a flourescent glow in the dark pin to help locate it. I buy these for every new driver in our family.

Marsha